Creating Space

Setting a seasonal intention can change one’s life. I have setting them for a few years now. Some of you may recall that my intention for this past summer was to try to Live More Simply. It was an eye opening process and I give myself a B+ for effort. As I now stand on the doorstep of the fall season, I offer myself a new challenge. My Fall intention is to create space.

I feel better when there is more space in me and around me. Having a clear and steady mindset, a strong and supple body and a clean house sounds like bliss to me. When I am in space, I feel lighter and happier and I want to cultivate living in this state more often in my daily life.

The yogis have been talking about this concept for thousands of year. They call my intention of creating space, aparigraha, or non-hoarding. This is the practice of letting go of old stuff, old habits and old thoughts.

There are many simple ways to practice aparigraha over the next few months. The easiest place to start is in one’s physical surroundings. De-cluttering is one of my most favorite pastimes and I have already set out two bins in my garage for Goodwill donations and library donations. Clutter be gone!

The physical body needs to be kept spacious as well. Yoga is the perfect tool and I feel extremely blessed to be able to practice yoga several times per week. By moving my body in many different ways, I am able to clean out pockets of tension and tightness, detoxify and basically de-clutter my vehicle. Ahhh!

Next and much more challenging, is the emotional house cleaning (I am due for some hardcore work here). Thankfully, I look to my daily meditation practice to help me with the huge process of letting go of thoughts and attachments that clutter my mind and drain me of energy.

Rolf Gates writes in Meditations from the Mat, Aparigraha applies to our own thinking as well. Aparigraha is about letting go of our most cherished pain-producing beliefs. It is about the end of all attachment: letting go of our fears, letting go of our desires, becoming free.

I recognize the scale of my Fall intention but I feel that I am ready for the challenge. I will keep you all posted on my progress and invite you all to comment and share your Fall intention or how you find ways to practice Creating Space. Namaste

The Art of Adapting

Adaptation: An alteration or adjustment in structure or habits by which a species or individual improves its condition in relationship to its environment.

I write this blog while sitting in a hot dorm room at Penn State. I am here for a few days as I chaperone a camp for my daughter’s soccer team. The scene is a step back in time for me. The rooms are small and stuffy and the dining hall smells the same way mine did over 25 years ago.

This experience has been a great practice for me as I observe how quickly my mind wants to whine and complain about my environment. As with most of you, I am used to living with the comforts of air conditioning, privacy and my own kitchen.

Stepping out of my comfort zone for a few days has tested my ability to adapt to the moment and the environment at hand. I have challenged myself to consciously rise above the discomfort of the situation and take a deep breath just as I have learned to do in my yoga practice.

This too shall pass of course and I know that I will soon be going home. Luckily, I don’t need to spend the semester here and I don’t need to take finals. I will soon be back in air conditioning and the comforts of my home.

This is, of course, “small potatoes” on the scale of discomfort. I recognize the size of the issue but I also acknowledge that it is an opportunity to practice mindfulness. As I have learned from my teachers, as we become more mindful we are able to adjust more gracefully to our environment. In other words, we become much more adaptable and much nicer to be around.

Play Simple

You may have heard me talk about my "summer intention" in one of my classes recently. If you haven't, I have firmly set an intention to "play simple" this summer. This means that I need to stay super mindful about slowing down and not doing. My plan is to discard what is non-essential, excessive and just plain ole busy.

"Play simple" is a command that I hear often and loud coming from soccer coaches standing on the side of the fields. "Don't complicate your play trying to be fancy." "One pass at a time". "Slow down and keep your head up". Does this sound familiar?

This process has been really fun I must say. There is definitely something to simplifying and I highly recommend it. As of late, this intention has been really coming out in my classes. I’ve been teaching simple breath with simple words with simple transitions. The atmosphere has been profoundly steady and calm. Wow.

I believe that simplicity creates the space from which we can create an extraordinary life. One step at a time. One chore. One class. One breath.

Be Here Now... and now... and now.

Be Here Now is the title of a 1971 book on spirituality by Ram Dass. It was a revolutionary book bringing eastern studies and practices to American soil. Its title, now a coined phrase, has been repeated by spiritual teachers throughout the world.

Be here now. Show up fully. Pay attention to what you are doing. While growing up, we heard it from our parents and teachers. As adults, we are reminded of the importance of paying attention on our busy roads, at our fast-paced computers and on our yoga mats.

Woody Allen said, “80% of success is showing up”. Just show up! It is so simple yet so challenging with a list of things to-do a mile long and a calendar that is busting at the seams. Why can’t I drive to work, text my friend, look at my GPS and listen to the news at the same time. Why not?

The answer is painfully simple. Overdoing and over thinking creates stress in the mind and body. Paying attention and focusing on the moment as it arises, cultivates peace.

Excitement or Happiness?

Many people think of excitement as happiness. But when you are excited you are not peaceful. True happiness is based on peace. ~ The Art of Power by Thich Nhat Hanh

Reading this passage a few days ago literally took my breath away. How many times per week do I mistake excitement for happiness? I would answer hundreds of times.

Our society craves excitement because we mistake it for happiness. We are excitement seekers searching for a thrill to quench our thirst. We thrive on experiencing the fast roller coaster, the thrill of purchasing a new car, the last minute of a championship game. Those moments are fleeting. The excitement wears off, the hangover begins and we find ourselves searching for the next big thrill. In the process, we exhaust ourselves both emotionally and physically.

“When you are excited you are not peaceful. True happiness is based on peace.” “True happiness”, says TNH, “cannot be purchased, it must be cultivated.”
This master teaches us how to cultivate happiness. It begins with conscious breathing and focus on the moment at hand. In other words, “be here now!” It continues with conscious movement such as yoga or walking meditation. Our peacefulness is then strengthened through seated meditation practice.

No rollercoaster, no last second touchdown, no Porsche will ever “make” us happy. Think about this. Notice if you too confuse excitement with happiness. I believe that observation will help us break free from the delusional search for excitement. I would love to hear your comments.

In peace.

Practicing the Power of Now

Realize deeply that the present moment is all you ever have. Make the Now the primary focus of your life. Whereas before you dwelt in time and paid brief visits to the Now, have your dwelling place in the Now and pay brief visits to past and future when required to deal with the practical aspects of your life. Always say "yes" to the present moment. -Eckhart Tolle, The Power of Now

The words of Tolle are simple. It’s really about being fully engaged in life. Living every moment completely and being a part of 100% of the Now. The bottom line is that you are most powerful, most intuitive when you are present. When you learn to disengage from your mind, your thoughts, your worries and focus fully on the Now you find stillness. You find peace. You know what you need. You know what to do.

Focusing on the Now disconnects you from the mental chatter that controls your emotions and drains your energy. Mental chatter and worry is the cause of stress. Disconnect from incessant thinking and you will no longer create stress in your mind and body.

Children and animals are the best teachers of how to live in the present. They are not controlled by thought. Observe them as go in and out of moments in their lives. They show up fully for whatever situations arise. Watch them play and notice their authentic power shine through. They are luminous. Children and animals spend their days disengaged from their minds and fully engaged in the Now. They know of no other way to be. They don’t live in the “yesterdays” and they don't care about the “tomorrows”.

How does one stay present in the moment? Tolle suggests that you, “"Be the ever alert guardian of your thoughts". Guarding your thoughts is the first step. Make a commitment to “check-in” mentally every 10 minutes. Notice when you leave the Now. Notice when your mind flutters away to past or future stories. Catch yourself and reel yourself back in to what you are doing. Ask yourself throughout the day, "Where am I right now?” “Where did I go?” And then with a smile and without judging guide your mind back to the moment.

Practicing yoga and meditation is an ideal way to experience the power of Now. These disciplines allow you the time to observe mental chatter. On your mat or cushion you have the space to observe your mental trips to the past and the future.

Learning to live in the present moment is a life long journey. It starts right now.

Welcome to Your Life!

Last Thursday my mom had her second knee replacement in three months. At 72, her joints had failed her to the point that she was just about considered disabled. Her first knee replacement in January had gone so well that she pushed up the date for her second one by six months.

So on Thursday, only a few hours after my mom’s surgery, my 15-year old daughter called her to see how she was feeling. In her usual infectiously enthusiastic manner, my daughter blurted out, “Grandma, welcome to your life!”

Her words took my breath away. They were perfectly timed, perfectly delivered and incredibly empowering. Here was a 15 year-old, reminding a senior that at any moment we have the opportunity to start anew. “Grandma”, she said, “now you have two new knees and now you will be able to do all those things that you couldn’t do before”.

What an invitation. Welcome to your life.

The Buddhists teach us about the “fresh start”, and that at any moment we can choose to begin again. They teach us that with each breath we have an opportunity to start over. Our yoga practice teaches us that each pose can be compared to a little life and when the pose is over we begin again we new focus and new breath. The final and arguably most important pose of our yoga practice, savasana or final rest, reminds us to “die” to who we were when we started our practice and to begin anew. We rise from our mats, fully renewed and refreshed and as some will say with new eyes and a fresh start.

So I invite you all to do as I have done in the past few days. That is to adopt my daughter’s words as my new daily mantra. Chant them when you arise in the morning. Remind yourself of them when you transition from home to work. Go to sleep with them as a reminder of how blessed you were to have experienced another day.

Whether you have new knees or just a new outlook, welcome to your life.